Viewing myself on video is not my favorite,
but I have gained perspective as to just how
powerful video reigns in social medialand and
how it continues to re-shape the landscape of blogging.

I mean, I have understood video’s impact since theearly 1980’s when my friends and I filmed with betafor our local cable station…yes, young people,there was a lack of content to broadcast on the airlocally in the Reagan years so teens like uscould stop by the studio,rent professional equipment for free, and getour crazy indie films seen on TV for nothing!(If you missed my starring role on cable in thegroundbreaking Spazz the Cat, truly youhave been culturally deprived.)

But I think I forgot that my lifestyle and home blogging,
which is indeed storytelling, could evolve and grow
if I was willing to leave my comfort zone.

I’m a writer.
A creative soul wired for words.
I mainly write to discover and usher
my heart’s stirrings into the light.
I write to express wonder and to play with it.
On Hello Lovely, I write mainly to exclaim“Look at the beauty here…isn’t it inspiring!?!”

Vulnerable not only because my appearance, manners,
and surroundings will be judged and weighed,
but because the behind-the-writer-mystique
sort of dissipates…yes?

The humorous, weird-but-nice-and-spiritual,smart yet only slightly snobbybloggerfairy of pretty roomsis suddenly a barefoot aging womanwith a Chicago accentin wrinkled thrifted turtleneck(why didn’t she iron or check the mirror?)inviting you into private spaces.

It’s tempting to reside in the safety and shadow
of that mystique where you can’t be hurt as easily.

Hello Lovely Studio

I watched the video and realized
that in significant ways, there’s no turning back.
People don’t consume video simply because
of short attention spans or how busy they are,
but because video engages their senses.

If I have something important enough toshare online, then I have to bemindful about engagement.

I learned recently that
65% of viewers will watch more
than 3/4 of a video, while only a small
percentage will read that much text.

I’m not saying I plan to write less, but I dosee myself pushing ‘record’ more oftenand bringing a multi-layered approachto tell stories with more depth and meaning.

Hello Lovely Studio

It’s like ol’ granny here (who possesses not
a techie bone in her body and aint the
strongest swimmer) is conquering a fear of
those changing tides of social media,
not by dipping in a toe, but by diving right in.

Whoa.

Whether you are a blogger or not,I’d love to hear your thoughts either ina comment here or an email about howvideo is impacting social media.

And if you like any of the graphics I made here,
please feel free to pin away and share them!

Hello Lovely Studio

In the mood for more posts where it gets personal?
You might like these.